Need help to machine light body

Hi All

Well in short I don't have a lathe, so I'm hoping for a willing soul to machine a light body for me for some extra $. It's a loooong overdue build. I have most of the part, just need the Alu body. I have a design drawn out so it just needs to be made accordingly. I/we can changes if need be but I'm happy with the way it is.

if you don't get any takers (that's a lot of machining) the 35mm Easy2LED light body would be worth a look. Not as much surface area as your design, but you can buy it off the shelf and it looks good value ($30?)

Brad's work here speaks for itself, but I can also say that he's done machining for me and from a customer service perspective, he was great. He improved my (very rough) design, delivered on time and on budget.

(And the project is still my favourite light!)

The study du jour: can one's reputation be artificially inflated by simply putting a request for rep in one's sig?

For starters you really need to know how to set up your tooling, which for starters will be a turning tool, parting blade and boring bar. There are lots of good youtube vids on this, or even forums like practical machinist and peoples blogs. Then learn about feeds and speeds, especially for aluminium which will be your starting material if making lights.

At the end of the day your ears, eye's and hands will tell you if things are cutting right. Being able to feel the cutting through the carriage handwheels will often tell you if you are cutting too slow or too fast. Same as the sounds the piece makes as you cut it but this will come with experience.

If your still interested I could take a crack at this. I need some cnc lathe projects for school. I have a lot of projects lined up for the mill, no lathe projects. This looks like it would be fun. Let me know.

I've read through a few of the old manuals and they're still very relevant. Afterall, the principles haven't changed much in centuries!

Wow Thanks a lot! I've been busy going through all the links, really cool!

Originally Posted by Pro4tundra

If your still interested I could take a crack at this. I need some cnc lathe projects for school. I have a lot of projects lined up for the mill, no lathe projects. This looks like it would be fun. Let me know.